Muted Dreams
by White Aura Dragon
Summary: At age four Ash is involved in a serious accident on Cinibar Island, during the accident, he unlocks his hidden powers. But, no power comes without a price. When Ash loses the love of the one closest to him, he becomes Red. "After all, their dreams have been muted for too long."


**Hello People! Aura here with an all-new story! To those of you that are currently reading The Blue Knight, don't worry. I'm still working on it. Chapter (s) 3 / 4 on their way! This is a Pokémon story. Don't like it, don't read it. I appreciate help, but all-out flames are either not listened to, or ignored. So, let's carry on shall we?**

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To any normal person, the Ketchum's were an ordinary family. A loving mother, and a wonderful intelligent son. They lived in a small house in a small town. Mrs. Ketchum ran a small restaurant and also worked part-time with Prof. Oak. To the public, they appeared happy. Their young son, however, was the clue that the Ketchum's were not ordinary. They haven't been since the day their lives turned around. We start our story when the boy is four, and had no idea what was about to happen.

_**Muted Dreams**_

It was the last day of preschool for the children at the small school in town and when the bell rang, all of the students streamed outside, older brothers giving younger siblings piggy back rides as they left the building. Three students in particular though, gathered to the side of the wave, saying their farewells until the next school year. Within this group were Gary Oak, Leaf Green, and Ash Ketchum. All were only four years old and extremely excited for the summer. "My Grandpa's takin' me to Ceru-Cerulean city for the swummer!" Said Gary, extremely enthusiastic at the thought of spending more time with his grandpa, the world-famous Pokémon professor. "Wow!" Cried Leaf, "My parewents are taking me on a week-long camping trip in Viridian Forest so we can get some good pictures of the Pokémon there." Ash nodded. "Those both sound really cool. My mom and dad are taking me to Cinnabar Island. Mom's got some wok with fossils and dad wants to find some new stuff for the restaurant." Gary was about to comment when a loud, "Ash, over here!" Called them away from their conversation. "See you next fall guys!" Ash called over his shoulder, as his friends shouted a simultaneous "Bye!" back at him. He ran through the crowds, and appeared next to his mother and father. "Come on sweetie. I've got your stuff packed and the boat leaves in an hour. And before you ask," She said, holding up a hand to silence her curious son. "We can't use the Pokémon because they can't carry all of us." Ash nodded and sat down in the back of the car, his mother buckling him into his car seat. As they drove Ash kept his nose pressed to the window, looking for as many Pokémon as he could. Ash was smart for his age. He asked more questions and read books to find the answers. Now, he was four, so he had some restrictions. As Ash looked out the window, he could've sworn he saw an Arcanine, but by the time he looked again, it was gone.

*******************************Time Skip (GASP)*********************************

"Mom! Over here! Look what I found!" Delia rushed over to an excited Ash, wondering what he had found. "What is it sweetie?" Ash jumped up and down. "I found words!" He pointed towards a large inscription on the wall. Upon taking a closer look, Delia discovered it was written in unknown language. "Ash sweetie, Mommy can't read it." Ash looked at her questioningly. "But I can." Delia laughed. "Of course you can't sweetie. No one has bee able to read it for a long time. The last people who could read it were the sea people, who passed the art on to the aura guardians. Since they died out, no one can even hope to understand the language." Ash looked at her again. The questioning look still on his face. "But mommy, look." Ash ran forward and placed his hand on the strange markings. Suddenly, a bright light appeared, seemingly shining through the letters. Delia gasped and fumbled for her camera. " Jackson! Get over here! You won't believe what Ash is doing!" Jackson – Mr. Ketchum- ran in from the next cavern. "What is it? What's going on?" Delia pointed towards the cave wall, where Ash was proceeding to touch the rest of the letters, making them shine with unknown power. When all the letters were shining, Ash screamed and fell to his knees, his form flickering for a moment. Delia forgot the shining words and ran to her son as he screamed again. This time, a wave of power shook the caves. Jackson ran to his wife and child. He threw himself on top of their huddled forms, protecting them from the brunt of the attack coming from the falling rocks. Ash cried out more, tears streaming down his face as the cavern walls fell around him. As he began to lose consciousness, his vision turned white, and he saw a large crowd of Pokémon standing in front of him, the light from behind blurring their features. As his world faded to black, he opened his eyes to reality again, he screamed as he saw the life slowly slip from his father's eyes. Then, he finally lost his grip on consciousness.

In the Hall of Origin, Arceus looked down sadly at his chosen one. Winching as he felt the pain the child was going through as he saw his father die protecting him. '_The very first pure hearted human… Not even Aaron came close to the pureness of young Ash's heart. His power has awakened early; I shall send Mew to help him control it. She'll give him a way to seal it until the time comes for his ascension. Now, rest my son.'_ As Ash's unconsciousness faded into sleep, Arceus called on Mew and gave her his instructions. _'Mew, you have to help Ash seal his power for the time being. Do whatever you have to, just make sure it is not permanently sealed.' _Mew nodded and flew off towards Pallet town. Not even bothering to stop and joke around. She too had seen what happened to the young prince, and knew that this was a serious problem. She knew how to seal his power, but it would let some of the effects shine through. Pokémon would respect him more. And the physical change would definitely be apparent. She only hoped that it wouldn't affect his personality, or his mind.

*******************************TIME SKIP (AGAIN)********************************

The past three years had been difficult for Ash. When they arrived home from the hospital, his mother hadn't spoken to him. He knew, even at the tender age of four, that his mom was just sad over the loss of his father. Oh how he wished that were the case. For a whole week he had pestered her, trying to get her to cheer up, and realize that she wasn't the only person who had lost someone. This attempt had ended badly. His mother had lashed out at him, striking him across the face with the back of her hand. Accusing him for his father's death. But, Ash knew that his mother loved him, so he took it. He tried his best to be the perfect son is mother wanted. He studied hard, and reached the top of his class. She was happy, if only for a month or two. That was when Mew showed up, and attached a tail to his back and ears to his head to keep his untamed power sealed for the time being. The tail was long. Just like Mew's in every way save the color. While hers was a bubble gum pink, his was a dark raven black that shone with a bluish tint when under the light, his ears a matching color. The second Mew left, his mother had struck him again. Attempting to 'beat his freakishness out of him.' He had run away from his mother and hid in his new room- the basement. It was then that the physical changes started to appear. His light black hair darkened to the same color as his tail, and grew till his bangs hung in his eyes and the bottom of his hair reached just past his chin, sometimes spiking in the back. His eyes changed from a warm brown, to a deep crimson with glowing gold and orange flecks here and there simulating small embers. His skin was fair and unembellished, save for the scars running up and down his arms from the accident three years ago. But Ash's favorite change had been the small fang that now rested in his mouth. He kept going to school, and continued to gain top marks, hoping that his mother would some day approve. He had also reconciled with his old friends, and they had created new names for each other, as their old ones had been ruined for their families. Gary's- now Blue's- parents had died the year after Ash's father, and his grandfather chose not to pay attention to his struggling grandson, in favor of admiring Ash- now Red- who had a gift with Pokémon only enhanced by his new power. Of course, the professor didn't know about Red's power. Only His friends did, along with his mother. Leaf had become Green; her parents had ignored her in favor of her younger sister Lily, and began to treat her more as a servant than a daughter. Ash had changed to Red, his mother wishing he had died instead of his father, and attempting to make an exchange for his life, by beating Ash. The three friends had become family, and vowed that one-day they would set off on their journeys and never look back.

***********************TIME SKIP (don't you just love these?)************************

It was now almost eight years since the accident, and the group of friends liked to say that things were getting better. But, that would be a lie. Red's mom had met someone, and she had given birth to a small baby girl two years ago. Now, she only beat him 2 times a month, not at all if he was lucky, more often if he was not. His mother generally ignored him, but his stepfather was another matter. He would use Red as a punching bag to relive his stress, and if he came home drunk- to restore his sobriety. At school, he and Blue were known to be some of the smartest kids in school, purposely alternating off and on for who reached the top of the class. In sports, all three excelled, Blue, Green, and Red often tying in competitions, but Green winning more often. They were known as the Color Model (RGB); because of they're near perfection in almost anything they tried. Blue excelled in sports, Green in science, and Red in Pokémon. Their reasons however for becoming this great, did not lie with future goals however. They did it for the smallest of compliments, recognition that wasn't a beating or an order. They also did it so they could be selected as the first three of their year to receive starter Pokémon from Blue's grandfather professor Oak. As the day of the announcement drew closer, the excitement in the trio could barely be contained. So, when the three were chosen, they all nearly burst into screams. They controlled themselves however, barely letting a small smile find it's way across their features. Or, in Green's case, letting a large smile pass for a moment, and then schooling her features into an expression similar to her comrade's. They waited until they received their instructions on when and where to show up, before bursting into smiles and screams of joy in the safety of their secret base, located in the Pallet forest near Prof. Oak's lab. The trio was so excited for their upcoming journey, they stayed out late into the night planning what starters they would pick and what Pokémon they would catch. Red returned home and silently slipped into the basement. He fell asleep eagerly awaiting September 1st, the day he would get a Pokémon.

"Where were you last night?" Asked his mother when he emerged from the basement the next morning. Red froze and cleaned his ears out with one of his pinkies. He thought he just heard his mother speak to him…_nicely. _His little sister looked up "Yeah you missed the annou-annoncement." His family turned to look at him. "I didn't miss the announcement. I won. I'm leaving tomorrow." Delia dropped her frying pan, and his stepfather- Ron- laughed. "No way. You're not smart enough to go on a Pokémon journey, let alone be one of the first in your class. Besides," His eyes darkened. "You're not leaving here, not with your life intact." Red couldn't prepare himself for the first punch. The fist rammed into his temple, sending stars across his vision. The second punch followed quickly, but before it could reach him, he stuck out a hand and caught his father's fist. "You," Ron shook his head, attempting to clear the shock from the fact that the delinquent child from the basement was fighting back. "Will never, hurt me, AGAIN!" At that final word Red's tail lashed out and struck Ron on the forehead, knocking him unconscious. His mother walked over to him, while his sister sat there shocked. Delia stepped over Ron's limp body, and walked closer to Red. "You listen here. I've had to deal with your freakishness invading my home for the past six years. You say you're going on a journey, great! Leave, and never come back." Red frowned, and slaked back to the basement. He quickly threw his things into his backpack and pulled one of his hats down on his head. He was about to leave, when he heard a small sound come from the electrical box. He quietly stalked over to the door, tail swishing behind him. When he opened the box, he was surprised to find a small Pokémon chewing on the wires. It resembled a Pikachu, but last he checked Pikachu weren't gold. Red pulled the small creature away from the box. "Hey little buddy, what's up?" the Pikachu looked at Red and began to from a witty retort, when he saw the black tail swishing behind his back. It was only then that Pikachu realized he could feel a faint aura of power emanating from him. Pikachu looked up and sighed. "Well, I was kicked out of my group in viridian forest because I was different. They couldn' stand the fact that I was special and they weren't, so they kicked me out." Red nodded, understanding what plagued the little mouse. "Well Pikachu, I'm getting a Pokémon in a few days, if you like you can travel with me after I get my starter. Then you can become strong and show your buddies that they were wrong to kick you out. How's that?" Pikachu nodded his assent. "Now," Red smirked, "What were you doing in the fuse box? Hmm?"

The next morning was a quiet affair. Red had snuck out of the house early to show Pikachu where they would meet after he obtained his starter. As he led the small mouse to their meeting point, he couldn't help but smile. He was leaving today. He would finally become a trainer and make his mark on the world in the best way he could. He would make his father proud. When the duo reached the meeting point, Red said goodbye to his new friend and began making his way to Professor Oak's lab. As he walked, rain began to fall lightly, splattering dark drops of water over the dirt road. Red froze, and looked at the sky, as the rain began to fall harder. He smiled but then frowned, as he became lost in a memory.

* * *

_A young Red stood in front of his father's grave, clutching the small Charmander toy that his father had given to him for his fourth birthday- the last before he died. It was the anniversary of his death, and his mother had thrown him out of the house. Red fell to his knees in front of the grave marker, crying. "Why," He muttered. "Why did you have to die? Was… Was it my fault? Did I kill you? If you hadn't protected us- protected _me_ would you still be here? Would mommy still love me? Love my memory?" Red's soft cries turned to sobs, as he curled himself around the small toy, and cried his heart out, letting out all the emotion he had been holding in since his death._

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_. _

Red shook himself free of the memory, trying to ignore the cold feeling of the rain on his pale skin. When Red made it to the lab, it was pouring, and he found a shivering Green under the overhang, trying to get dry. He smiled at her, and joined her under the overhang. She gave him a critical look. "Well, doesn't someone look nice today? Where'd you get the new threads? I doubt your _parents_ gave them to you." She spat the word parents out like it was poison burning the inside of her mouth. Red grinned sheepishly and scratched his neck, wet hair falling into his eyes. "I spent some of my savings on new clothes for my journey. Do you like it?" Green nodded and smiled brightly, admiring his new clothes. "You look great." And indeed he did. He was wearing baggy black jeans that had several pockets, a red t-shirt with a black leather jacket over it and a black beanie on top of his wet hair. His wore black fingerless gloves on his hands and had a red backpack slung over his shoulder. What caught her attention however was the small silver chain hanging out of his pocket, the silver ring on his finger, and the usual red and white cap hanging from his belt. The cap was nothing special- mainly red, with a white front and a red brim, the difference she could see was a tiny green button added to the top right corner. She suspected the chain was a normal adornment, so she brushed it off in favor of examining the ring.

The ring was a thick silver band with intricate designs running around it. The ring was inlaid with a beautiful round blue gem with a small carving inside that resembled a wheel with four outward spokes. She could only see the carving for a moment however, before it disappeared.

Red laughed as he watched Green inspect his hand and the ring on it. When she had finished inspecting it, he slipped it off his finger, and onto the small silver necklace he wore underneath his shirt. Making sure the ring couldn't be seen, he smiled. "Well, when do you think they're going to open the door? I'm getting kind of cold…" And, just as he spoke, the door to the lab burst open, making both Red and Green jump, and slip into their defensive positions.

"Oh, sorry Ash. Didn't mean to scare you. Leaf, what a surprise! I didn't see you there! I suppose you're here for your starter Pokémon, let's go inside." The old Professor turned around and walked down the hall, obviously expecting the two youths to follow. Both Green and Red twitched at the use of their real names, but followed the professor inside anyway. "Professor," Green started. "I don't know if Blue- Gary told you, but we'll be registering under different names when we go on our journeys." Professor Oak waved her off, continuing their forward march. "Yes, yes. Gary told me, he was so insistent; I let him register the Pokédexes for you. Now, where did that young boy go?" Just after he said this and began to look around, a loud thump was heard as a door slammed open. "I'm right here Old Man. Let's get this over with. Sooner I'm out, the sooner I'm happy." The professor sighed and nodded, as he continued to lead them into the lab. The professor stopped when they reached a large room strewn with tables covered in papers, books, and computers. The professor led them through the 'organized chaos' to a long table in front of a foggy glass door with two Pokballs resting on it. "Okay, now, there are three Pokémon to choose from-" "Squirtle, Charmander, and Bulbasaur. We know this already old man. Just get on with it." The professor chuckled and waved him off. "Now, now, Gary. Don't talk to your grandfather like that, it's disrespectful." Behind the professor's twinkling eyes Red could see something dark, something similar to the emotions his – _Delia's_ eyes held whenever she beat him. He hadn't used his powers in a while, but he could still read people's auras, and he could tell that the emotions swirling around the professor were anything but good. Blue almost immediately closed his mouth, the emotions around him swilling into fear, hate and resentment. Red had to get his friend out of here, _soon. _He cleared his throat a little to loud for it to be natural, and the professor turned his focus from Blue to him. Blue shot him a grateful look only for it to be returned with a look that said, _'you're telling me about this later'_. Red tuned himself back in to the professor's rambling just as the professor said, "- I have some special starters for you to choose from Ash, I know you'll like them." Red glared at the professor. "A-and what about Green? And Blue? Why am I the one getting special treatment?" Now, Red wasn't nervous, scared, or weak, but he was normally quiet, and only spoke normally with his friends or in times of anger. Instead, he chose to not speak at all unless it was in one of the aforementioned situations. "Well, I suppose thy can have one as well, though I warn you, the Charmander I had is already gone. So, whomever wanted that starter is going to have to choose a second from the extra Pokémon." Red nodded and shot glances towards his friends. They both turned and returned the look. They had decided previously who would get which starter, Blue wanted Squirtle, Green wanted Bulbasaur, and he had wanted Charmander. Too bad he wasn't going to get it, though it was a plus that they were all getting an extra Pokémon. It would just make his goal all that much easier to reach. Red has also learned that several rare Pokémon had accumulated themselves in Kanto, but no one could catch them, as if they were waiting for something, hopefully he could find out what. As professor Oak led them to the table with the Pokeballs resting upon it he considered what Pokémon they could possibly be. After Green and Blue had chosen their respective starters, Oak led them though the foggy glass doors to a large room filled with baby Pokémon running around.

The professor pushed a button on the wall and a loud high-pitched squeal filled the room, making him want to drop to his knees and cry. All at once the small Pokémon ran to the center of the room and formed a line in front of them. Before the professor could say anything, Green was drawn to a small pink Pokémon on the end of the line, it small red eyes and was about the size of a baseball. "Ah, Igglybuff. A nice choice, make sure you train it hard." While the professor spoke, Blue had picked up a small pixelated Pokémon that Red knew to be Porygon. How the professor had gotten one of those, he didn't know. He inspected the line of Pokémon, taking in all the different shapes and sizes. He had released a small amount of his power, so most of the Pokémon were looking at the ground. Red's sigh was immediately drawn to the three Pokémon that didn't seem to be affected, a small, blue and green dinosaur, a blue bipedal dog, and a small creature with a blue hat and orange spikes. He quickly identified them as Dino, Riolu, and Ralts, all rare Pokémon from different regions, two of them being shiny. He looked closely at all three Pokémon and glanced at the professor. "P-professor, what's g-going to happen to the rest of these Pokémon?" The professor sighed and looked him in the eye. "Oh, most likely they'll be kept here and used for breeding when they're old enough. I doubt they'll get battle experience, and if they do, for research purposes. I might send some to the other regions. Why?" Red had developed a shocked look, quickly hidden by his quick reflexes. He glanced at the Ralts, and leaned close to where he thought its ear was. "Ralts, I would like you to come with me. When the professor leaves, teleport to my energy signal." Ralts gave him a wary look, and stared into his eyes. For a small moment, Red let his intentions shine through his eyes, and the Ralts was quickly convinced. Red gave it a small nod and turned to the other Pokémon, asking them to join him on his journey. When they conveyed their consent, he nodded and turned to the professor, giving him his answer. The professor seemed shocked for a moment, but quickly returned the Pokémon to their balls and handed them over to Red. "Now Ash, make sure you're careful with these here Pokémon. They're very rare, and the green one is temperamental." Red just nodded at the professor and clipped the balls onto his belt.

"Now, here are your extra Pokeballs, I trust you know how to use them." All three of them nodded, ready to leave pallet and achieve their dreams. For Red, that was becoming a master and earning respect from his family along with preforming his 'duties', for Green, it was becoming a world-famous pokeathlete and breeder, and for Blue it was to become a professor and run a gym of his own. They all had different dreams, but they would make them come true, no matter what.

After all, their dreams had been muted for too long.

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**Hi guys. It's me Aura. And, before you kill me, I just want to say that I'm _really _sorry I haven't updated the Blue Knight yet.**

**Okay, now you can kill me.**

**Major thank-you to Laties228, you made me sit down in this chair and get cracking, I hope you like it.**

**If you have any suggestions, Leave 'em in the comments! I'd love to hear from you!**

**R&R**


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